On Sunday 14th June, we gathered in a different kind of way. Rather than settling in for a normal morning service, we were preparing to head out into Rayleigh town centre to join in with Trinity Fair — packed lunches in hand, a commissioning prayer on our lips, and a simple mission in front of us: to be good news to our neighbours. Ricky led the church through Luke 10, not as a straight read-through, but as a live briefing for what was about to happen that afternoon.
The sermon — titled Blessed To Be a Blessing: Take Two – drew on the moment in Luke’s Gospel when Jesus sends out seventy-two ordinary people, two by two, ahead of him into the towns He was about to visit. The connection felt immediate and real. The harvest Jesus spoke of wasn’t abstract — it was the hundreds of families, children, and older couples who would be walking the High Street just hours later. People who perhaps hadn’t thought about God in years. The message was straightforward: go, travel light, stay focused, accept hospitality, and proclaim the kingdom — not by winning arguments or being intense, but simply by being genuinely good news to whoever you met.
The gathering closed not with a benediction but with a commissioning. Members laid hands on one another and prayed together before heading out – some into town for a prayer walk, blessing pebbles, or treasure hunting, and others staying behind to create cards of thanks, prophetic art, or “take what you need” resources, praying as the engine room for those out on the streets. It was church doing what church is for.
Bible References
- Luke 10:1-11, 16-17
Key Teaching Points
The Harvest Is Already There
Jesus didn’t tell the seventy-two to create opportunities – he told them the harvest was already plentiful. Ricky made this concrete by inviting the congregation to picture Rayleigh High Street during Trinity Fair: real people, real families, real lives. The work of mission begins with seeing the people already around us, not waiting for the perfect moment or the perfect method. The prayer Jesus calls for is simply that more workers would be willing to go.
Go Light
Jesus instructed the seventy-two not to take a purse, a bag, or sandals – and Ricky had some fun unpacking what that might look like today, pulling out a packed lunch, slippers, a laptop, a book, and a costume as things not needed for the afternoon. The point underneath the humour was serious: go as you are, don’t pretend to be something you’re not, and trust that what you carry – which is ultimately Jesus himself — is enough.
We go light. We carry your peace. We trust that what we have is enough, because what we have is you.
Be Good News, Not an Argument
When Jesus tells the seventy-two to proclaim that “the kingdom of God has come near,” Ricky was clear about what that looks like in practice on a sunny Sunday afternoon at a local fair. It means smiling, being generous, saying “God loves you” and meaning it. It explicitly doesn’t mean being intense, looking to convince people, or trying to win a debate. The kingdom is announced through presence and kindness, not pressure.
Be Good News — God loves you, God bless you, smile, be generous. Don’t be weird. Don’t be intense. Don’t go looking to convince anyone or win an argument.
Rejection Is Part of the Mission
Jesus was honest with the seventy-two: not every town would welcome them. Ricky was equally honest. Not everyone on the High Street that afternoon would respond warmly, and that’s okay. The call is to move on politely, without bitterness, without disappointment. And there’s a freeing truth buried here – when someone rejects the message, they’re not ultimately rejecting you.
Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me.
Come Back and Share the Stories
The seventy-two returned with joy – and Jesus wanted to hear about it. Ricky drew this out as a pattern for the church too: come back, share what happened, talk about the conversations you had, the challenges you faced, and how it felt. Mission isn’t just about going out; it’s also about returning together and celebrating what God did, even in small and unexpected ways.
Going Deeper
Take some time this week to reflect on these questions:
- Jesus told the seventy-two that the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Who are the people in your everyday life – neighbours, colleagues, family — who might be closer to the kingdom than they know?
- The instruction to “travel light” was about trusting that what you have is enough. Are there things you feel you need to have sorted before you’re willing to share your faith – and are those things actually necessary?
- What would it look like for you personally to “be good news” to someone this week, without any pressure or agenda?
- How do you tend to respond when someone isn’t interested or reacts negatively? What would it look like to move on without bitterness, as Jesus described?
- The seventy-two came back and shared their stories. Who could you share your own experiences of faith and mission with – and who in your church family might you ask about theirs?
This week, why not pray the prayer Jesus suggested — asking the Lord of the harvest to send out workers — and then ask him whether you might be part of the answer. The kingdom of God is still coming near, and it still travels two by two.
[Disclaimer: this summary of the message is based on the preacher’s notes or a transcript of the message delivered, and has been produced by AI before being reviewed and edited.]
